Wayne Rooney has removed the term "Manchester United player" from his twitter page and replaced it with "NikeUK athlete" following his demand to Sir Alex Ferguson a fortnight ago to leave the club this summer.
While United are clear the striker is not for sale, according to a well placed source Rooney is valued at £40m by United, so if a serious offer was made for him this may at least be explored. United are interested in bringing Cristiano Ronaldo back to Old Trafford, from Real Madrid, so the potential transfer of Rooney would help finance any deal.
Paris Saint-Germain, Bayern Munich and Chelsea are potential suitors for the 27-year-old who has endured an uneven season for United.
While it is not known why Rooney removed the description from his Twitter feed, the timing of it further heightens the sense of his disgruntlement with life at United.
At the meeting with Ferguson the outgoing manager told Rooney he could not leave and that remains United's stance. Rooney's camp have declined to comment on his position.